winning federal contracts - nh economy€¦ · government contracts/subcontracts: • adequate...
TRANSCRIPT
Winning Federal Contracts:
Great Business Opportunity, or Nightmare?
NH PROCUREMENT TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE CENTER
NH DIVISION OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
NH DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC AFFAIRS
What is NH PTAC?
Funded by the Department of Defense (DoD) & the State of New Hampshire (DBEA)
Provides FREE assistance to NH companies to sell goods & services to federal, state, local government agencies, and school districts
Offers training/counseling/information
www.nheconomy.com/sell-to-the-government to register.
What are we going to
cover this morning? How is B2G Different from B2B?
Red Tape
Readiness
Fairness, Openness & Transparency
Social and Other Policy Goals
REGULATIONS
Timing
Sources of Assistance
How is Government Contracting
Different from B2B?
Red Tape
Highly regulated; different body of law & rules
Fairness, Openness & Transparency
Social goals implemented via spending rules
Time horizons can be very different
Conservative, risk-averse buyer
Take it or leave it attitude – “We’re the
government - this is how we do things.”
The tip of the Red Tape iceberg:
What you need in order to work for and
with the government…
Taxpayer identification number - either an EIN or your Social Security #
Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS number) from Dun & Bradstreet.
SAM – System for Award Management Registration – www.sam.gov. This is a required registration. SAM will assign you a Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code.
What you need in order to
work for and with the
government…(part 2)
SBA Firm Profile – “Dynamic Small Business Search”
registration. This is an add-on at the end of your
SAM.
Tip: prepare a descriptive narrative and list of
keywords before you do your SAM registration. Then
you can just cut-and-paste this into place in DSBS.
Readiness
What you need before you pursue government contracts/subcontracts:
• Adequate capitalization
• Drive, determination, & patience
• A competitive advantage
• Demand for products/services
• Competitive pricing and margins
• Effective quality system,
• Well-developed general business systems
• Bonding, insurance and security
clearance (if required)
Fairness, Openness &
Transparency
Requirements to publish opportunities
Sources sought
Justification & Approval (J&A) – sole
source
Presolicitation
Solicitation
Notice of Award
Debriefing Rights
Leveling (adjusting) the playing field
Fairness, Openness &
Transparency II
Access to documents
Access to contact people
Opportunity to ask questions
Notification of changes
Opportunity to comment on (proposed) rule changes
OSDBU & Ombudsman
Congressional assistance
Fairness, Openness &
Transparency III
FedBizzOpps
www.fbo.gov
Bid opportunities & some history
USA Spending
www.usaspending.gov
High-level market research
Federal Procurement Data System
https://www.fpds.gov
Detailed market research
Social Goals
Domestic Products & Exclusions
Small Businesses (SB)
Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDB; 8(a))
Women-owned & Economically-disadvantaged women-owned small businesses (WOSB & EDWOSB)
HUBZone certified small businesses
Veteran-owned & Service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (VOSB & SDVOSB)
HBCU & Alaskan Native
Small Business
SBA defines who’s small and who is not.
Based on North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes –different for different types of businesses.
NAICS Codes – 6-digit codes for every type of business: http://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/
Small Business
Contract-specific – NAICS code is attached to the contract, not to your company.
May be based on revenues or number of employees.
………………………………………………………..
FAR: 2.101 for definition of a small business.
Small Business Size Standards: http://www.sba.gov/content/am-i-small-business-concern
SB Subcategories
SDB, WOSB, EDWOSB, SDVOSB, HUBZone
Ownership & Control – legal & real
Day to day management
Owner’s criteria – financial,
qualifications, role
Size (including affiliates)
Mentor-Protégé
Teaming & Joint Ventures
Certification, verification, 3rd parties
WOSB/EDWOSB
5% overall goal
Self-certified, or third party certified
Both must be small in primary NAICS code
Both must be at least 51% unconditionally
owned and controlled by women who
are U.S. citizens
Day-to-day operations management and
long-term decision-making by women
ED must meet economic disadvantage
criteria
Economically
Disadvantaged
Female owners must have personal net
worth less than $750,000 (excluding
home equity, retirement accounts and
the business value)
They must have $350,000 or less each in
adjusted gross income (3 year average)
Must have $6,000,000 or less in personal
assets, excluding qualified retirement
accounts
Certification Process
You can self-certify at https://certify.SBA.gov
Requires upload of documentation
No certificate is issued; no one reviews submittal
Or third party:
El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
National Women Business Owners Corporation
US Women’s Chamber of Commerce
Women’s Business Enterprise National Council
Other Certifiers
Some state governments (not NH)
The U.S. DOT Disadvantaged Business
Enterprise (DBE) program (available in
NH)
https://www.nh.gov/dot/org/administrati
on/ofc/dbe.htm
Includes WBE component
Often a basis for other states’ broader
WBE certifications.
Federal Small Business
Goals Small Businesses – 23%
…….
SDB – 5%
WOSB – 5%
HUBZone – 3%
SDVOSB – 3%
Individual federal agency goals may be verydifferent.
In addition to contracting goals, there are subcontracting goals, set-asides and
sometimes other benefits to each specific socio-economic status.
Position your business:
Which program(s) are right for you?
Are you eligible?
How do you apply?
How do you make the program work for
you?
The tip of the regulatory
iceberg: Federal Acquisition
Regulations (FAR)
http://farsite.hill.af.mil/ ~ 2000 pages
FAR Chapters contain most of the rules that pertain
to procurement
FAR clauses insert those rules into your contract
You agree to many FAR clauses during SAM
registration.
Often add many more in each individual contract.
Federal Acquisition
Regulations (part 2) Some Key FAR Parts:
Part 2 - Definitions of Words and Terms
Part 9 - Contractor Qualifications
Part 12 - Acquisition of Commercial Items
Part 13 - Simplified Acquisition Procedures
Part 15 - Contracting by Negotiation
Part 19 - Small Business Programs
Part 33 - Protests, Disputes and Appeals
Part 49 - Termination of Contracts
Timing:
Sometimes, the government can take a
long-term view.
Acquisition planning
Development of “requirement”
Accessing funds
Figuring out how to procure
Valuation of products or services
“Total life-span cost”
“Best value”
“LPTA”
Some Other Sources of
Help: SBA NH District Office
https://www.sba.gov/offices/district/nh/concord
Center for Women and Enterprise (CWE) http://www.cweonline.org/Default.aspx
Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC)
www.cweonline.org/vboc
SBDC (Small Business Development Center)https://www.nhsbdc.org/
SCORE
www.score.org
Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP)
www.nhmep.org
NH PTAC will assist:
Dealing with red tape – registrations, codes,
“alphabet soup” etc.
Marketing techniques
Identifying bid opportunities and
understanding bid requirements
Knowing the competition
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) – “the
rules of the road.”
Payment processes
Shameless Commercial:
NH PTAC offers free assistance with all this
& more.
You must have a physical presence in
New Hampshire.
You have to sign up online.
To continue “active client” status, you
have to use us as a resource.
How do I get started with
NH PTAC? Go to the website and answer our
questionnaire
(www.nheconomy.com/sell-to-the-
government).
Give us a call at (603) 271-7581
Come and visit us in Concord (by
appointment)
Request a site visit – we’ll come to you.